Showmance
by Anna Flair
Summary: A collection of one-shots featuring Jesse and Rachel performing in a different Broadway show each chapter! Chapter 1 Title: How to Fall in Love Without Really Trying


**Disclaimer: The fact that Jon Groff is only in the last three episodes of this season is evidence enough that I do not own Glee. How to Succeed in Buisness Without Really Trying isn't mine either.**

**Summary: This story is a collection of one-shots that put Jesse and Rachel as actors in a different Broadway show each chapter! Their relationship differs every one-shot (friends, husband and wife, enemies, etc.), but their relationship HISTORY (as in, everything that happened in the back 9 episodes of Season 1, and perhaps what happens in the last three episodes of Season 2) will remain the same with every chapter. Some shows will be more well-known, while others are just personal favorites. Hey, who knows? Maybe I'll introduce some of you guys to shows that you'll end up falling in love with! Okay…I talk too much. Hope you enjoy this one-shot****.**

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><p><strong>1: How to Fall In Love Without Really Trying<strong>

How Rachel had ended up in the position she was in was beyond her knowledge. She was standing on a Broadway stage, fully garbed in 50s era clothing, with Jesse St. James's lips an inch from hers. It had only been a week ago that she stood in a rehearsal studio, angrily yelling at her director that the choice to change their male lead in _How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying_ was completely illogical.

"Casper has one of the most fantastic voices in all of New York! How could you possibly fire him?"

The director, Laura, shrugged. "He was an ass. Come on, you know he was."

"Even so, opening night is in a week! Laura, what were you thinking? Where are we going to find a replacement so quickly? Are you trying to tell me you couldn't have put up with Casper for a little longer? I mean, it wasn't as if he was even going to stay with the show for a long time. He even told me that he'd only be with us for about a month before moving on to a different show."

"Rachel, we had a falling out. Things were said that I don't wish to repeat. It's done now. Casper is gone, and for your information, I have already found a replacement. He has impressed me so much that I'm sure he can learn everything within a week."

"I highly doubt that. What's his name?"

"You wouldn't know him. He came from California. One of the best theatrical actors out there. I've spoken with some of the directors he's worked with. They say he's magnificent."

"Oh, I wouldn't say 'magnificent'. That's a little much, don't you think?"

Rachel spun around to see who had spoken. A tall man walked into the studio, running a hand through his curly hair.

"_Oh dear Barbra. This _cannot_ be happening_."

"Nice to see you again, Laura." Jesse St. James strode over to Laura and gave her a hug before turning towards Rachel. "I always knew you'd star in a Broadway show. Didn't I tell you that? God, it was such a long time ago."

Rachel glared at him. "Yeah, you told me that a couple of days before you egged me," she muttered, turning away from him.

"After all these years, you're still going to hold that against me?" Jesse sighed. "It's been what? Ten years?"

"Do you two know each other?" Laura asked, obviously confused.

"I thought I knew him, before he broke my heart," Rachel said tightly, still facing away from Laura and Jesse.

"Ten years ago, Rachel! I think we've both matured by now. I would've thought you'd have learned that holding grudges does no good."

"I distinctly recall warning you that if you broke my heart, it'd be the kind of heartbreak I'd hold for the rest of my life, Jesse."

"Guys!" Laura shouted. "Stop fighting. This is not the place to discuss personal matters. We're in a professional setting, so could we please act mature? Rachel, I'm going to need you to help Jesse learn the choreography for 'Brotherhood of Man'. I just got a call from the theater. Apparently they need me to check out some new set items. It'll only take me an hour, and I'll come back right after. Hopefully Greg will be here by then to help you and Jesse work on your duet. Can you promise me that you two will get along while I'm gone?"

Rachel glanced at Jesse. "I'm willing to work with him as long as he agrees to keep things professional."

Jesse rolled his eyes. "Of course I'll be professional. I _am_ professional."

"Good," Laura said warily, eyeing the two of them. "I'll be back in a little while."

As soon as Laura left, Rachel dove right into the choreography, moving so quickly that Jesse didn't have the chance to talk.

"Rach, can we take a break?" he asked her multiple times, to which she responded with a quick, "No. And don't call me Rach!" before moving on to next dance steps.

After a while, though, it got to the point where Rachel could barely breathe, and she finally consented to taking a two-minute water break.

"I'm sorry for what I did, you know," Jesse murmured as they sat against the studio wall, catching their breath.

"Professional setting," Rachel warned, gritting her teeth.

"Hey, you're the one who's holding the grudge. I just figured you'd want to talk about it. I didn't really want to egg you. Vocal Adrenaline forced me to do it; they said they'd kick me off the team if I didn't."

"I don't want to talk about this," Rachel muttered, looking down at her water bottle.

"You're never going to get over this if we don't talk about it. Have you ever heard of closure?"

"I'd rather just hate you for the rest of my life than reach closure."

"That's just stupid. Besides, you have to act like you're in love with me in How to Succeed. You're the Rosemary to my J. Pierpont Finch. How are you going to act all lovey-dovey if you hate me?"

"I'm a better actress than you think, Jesse."

He laughed. "You're still as dramatic as I remember. I missed you. A lot."

Rachel jumped up. "Obviously the term "professional setting" isn't in your dictionary. Water break is over. Get up and start dancing."

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><p>An hour later, Rachel had succeeded in teaching Jesse the whole routine of 'Brotherhood of Man' and had even taught him the beginning of 'Grand Old Ivy'. Jesse persistently tried to get Rachel to have a normal conversation with him, but it was to no avail. Laura returned to the studio with Greg, the show's musical director, in tow.<p>

After learning what Rachel had accomplished, Laura made Jesse show her what he had learned, and was impressed to see him perform the whole dance to 'Brotherhood of Man' perfectly.

"Wow. I can just imagine how hard Rachel must have been working you. Well, lucky for you, you get to rest your feet for a little while. We're going to work on you and Rachel's song now. I finally get to hear those vocal cords I've been waiting so long to hear in person."

Laura handed out the sheet music and Greg took his place at the piano. "I assume you're familiar with the music from this show?" he asked Jesse, who nodded. "Very well. Then you should have no problem with this song. Let's run through the entire thing, and then we can work on whatever I find to be unsuitable." With that, Greg started playing, and both Rachel and Jesse moved closer to him.

As soon as Jesse opened his mouth, Rachel felt like dying. His voice was exactly the way she remembered it- perfect. All of her past feelings towards him diminished, and now there was only this moment. Rachel closed her eyes and let his voice consume her.

_"Was the melody locked inside me_

_Till at last out it came?_

_Rosemary! Rosemary! _

_Just imagine if we kissed!_

_What a crescendo, not to be missed. _

_As for the rest of my lifetime program,_

_Give me more of the same:_

_Rosemary! Rosemary!_

_There is wonderful music in the very sound_

_Of your name!"_

When it was her turn to join in, Rachel was reminded of how well their voices meshed. It was like a match made in heaven. Together, they sounded beautiful. Rachel smiled and looked at Jesse and found that he was already staring at her. The emotion behind his eyes startled her, and she immediately looked away. For the rest of the song, she stared at the floor, and when the song had ended, she refused to lift her head.

"Wow. That was so amazing. I only have one piece of critism. You're supposed to kiss. Do it now," Laura said.

"What?" Rachel and Jesse both turned towards her.

"You guys were supposed to kiss in the middle of the song, but you skipped over it. You _do_ realize you're going to have to kiss each other every nigh, right? Might as well start now."

Rachel frowned. "I'm not kissing him until I absolutely have to."

"Well, my dear Rachel, since I am the director, I deem this as an 'absolutely have to' moment. Now kiss!"

Rachel was rooted in place and her face paled drastically. Beside her, she felt Jesse move closer and wrap his arms around her waist. She slowly turned her head up towards him and felt breathless when she saw his blue eyes so close to her face.

"It's just acting, right?" Jesse murmured, before capturing her lips with his.

Rachel tried to resist the urge to kiss back, but his lips were so insistent on hers that she finally surrendered. She never thought in a million years she'd actually _enjoy_ kissing Jesse after the egging incident. Yet, here she was, fully enjoying their kiss, not even thinking about when they should break apart.

Jesse must not have been thinking about that either, because Laura had to clear her throat for them to get the hint to end the kiss. They broke apart, and Rachel's face turned beet red.

"Shouldn't have done that," she muttered to herself. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jesse smirk.

"Well," Laura began slowly. "I had thought you guys wouldn't have any chemistry. I was totally wrong. That was…_magical_."

Rachel's face turned even redder, and she took a step away from Jesse.

"Since you and Jesse have accomplished so much today, I'll give you guys the rest of the day off. Go have some fun."

Rachel immediately grabbed her stuff, and with a swift wave goodbye, left the studio. When she was gone, Laura turned to Jesse and said, "Congratulations. You managed to have a girl who hated you fall in love with you within three hours. I think that's a new record."

Rachel and Jesse continued to have rehearsals together, except for the remainder of the week, the rest of the cast was with them. Rachel made sure to always keep busy to avoid talking with Jesse. Laura had made them kiss every day since that first rehearsal, but Rachel made sure to keep the kisses short.

Jesse had managed to get Rachel's cellphone number from Laura, and he had been texting her _all the time_. Of course, she never responded, but for some reason he continued to keep texting her. Most of the messages were just apologies and explanations for why he egged her, but a couple of them contained pictures of the two of them together when they were still in high school. One picture was of them at a Wiggles concert, another was of them playing around with her webcam, and a third was of them watching _Grease_ together. How the hell Jesse still had those pictures was beyond Rachel, but _she_ couldn't help but get a little teary-eyed when she saw them. They looked so happy together. They _could_ be happy together..._again_.

What was she saying? There was no way she could be falling in love with Jesse again. Rachel wouldn't allow herself to. This was the boy who had broken her heart. Yet, it was also the same boy who made her feel as if she could reach the stars and more. The same boy who made her feel safe. The same boy who apologized at least a million times for what he had done to her. Was that enough?

These were the thoughts that ran through Rachel's mind the opening night of _How to Succeed_, and as Jesse leaned in to kiss her onstage, she quickly made up her mind. When his lips touched hers, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, and went to deepen the kiss. Jesse immediately responded, and they seemed to stand there for hours kissing each other. When they were froced to break apart in order to continue singing, Jesse smiled down at Rachel, and continued to hold her hands throughout the rest of the song.

When intermission arrived, Jesse led Rachel offstage, and whispered in her ear, "I know this really good sushi place a couple of blocks from here. Are you free Friday?"

Rachel smiled up at him. "Friday sounds perfect."

Jesse wrapped his arms around her. "I've missed you so much."

As he leaned down to kiss her, he sung softly:

"_Rachel...There is wonderful music in the very sound of your name..."_

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><p><strong>AN: The song used in the middle and at the very end is called "Rosemary" and it's from _How to Succeed..._The updates aren't going to be all that continuous, but when inspiration strikes, I'll be sure to write a new chapter! For this reason, though, I suggest you put this story on alert. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The show isn't really that well-known, but it's one of my favorites =) Believe me, I'll be doing more well-known shows as this story continues. In fact, I already have the next show figured out, and as a present for reviewing, I'll PM you what it is! Thanks so much for reading! Also, I'd be happy to take requests for Broadway shows to use in futre chapters! Just mention them in your *REVIEW***


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